The invention is drawn to a theft deterrent device which prevents unauthorized removal of a rallye wheel hub cap or wheel cover from a vehicle wheel.
The hub cap produced for the rallye wheel is easily stolen and unless protected, is very easy to steal from the vehicle, using only one's hands; no tools are required for removal. It should also be noted that the manufacturer of the rallye wheel hub cap stopped producing them in 1989, thus making them even more scarce, and therefore, more valuable.
There is presently no other device on the market to deter the theft of the rallye wheel hub cap which attaches to the wheel without modifying the hub cap or the wheel.
The prior art demonstrated in this field includes devices which require the alteration or refitting of the hub cap to the wheel in a manner to which is foreign to the manufacturer's original specification. Not only do the alternations or refitting alter the appearance of the hub cap, but in some instances actually change the structure due to welding, heating and drilling of the original cap to accept the after market devices. On some classic or collectible automobles this is a definite point disadvantage when competing in an auto show.
Other forms of the prior art include devices that incorporate heavy pieces of metal to connect the hub cap to the wheel which, by definition are off-center to the horizontal axis of the wheel, thereby causing the rotating wheel assembly to be out of balance resulting in premature tire wear, not to mention the shaking felt by the operator, due to the out of balance effect.
One form of prior art allows a would-be thief to observe the anti-theft device attached to the hubcap in plain view, thereby allowing the thief to determine which tools are needed to remove the device.
It is a primary object of this invention to provide a device to retain a rallye wheel hub cap without requiring modification of either the wheel or the hub cap.
It is another object of this invention to provide a rallye wheel hub cap theft deterrent device which is low cost, easy to install and weather resistant.
It is a further objection of the invention to provide a device which will be hidden from view inside the hub cap so as to not warn a potential thief .